The Shatter Effect
by Gwynevere Whisper
Summary: Ruby Rose never fully returns to the Xiao Long residence that night, that night that everything changed. A man decided to throw a stone into the murky waters that we call Remnant and he changed everything. You shoot a pot and it shatters into a million pieces. One bullet to change everything. Each shard to show a path, an entirely new World. (DISCONTINUED)
1. Prologue

AN: So this is rather short for prologue compared to my other series(es?) Like seriously though how do you pluralize a series to show that there are multiple series? Anyways I hope you guys enjoy because I only have one idea left before I put up a poll and let people vote on which story I focus on. of course I'll still update my others I'll just be focusing on that particular story. Anyways please enjoy.

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 _The Butterfly Effect. One thing will happen and more paths will open up, some bad and some good. You shoot a vase and it shatters into millions of pieces, one bullet to change everything. You make a decision and somebody gets angry, you could've done something else to change the outcome._

 _This is a world where Ruby Rose didn't return back to the Xiao Long residence for long that night. That night where everything changed. One person decided to take action and it changed_ everything. _From mental states to body counts, altering the world we knew as Remnant._

 _The effect rippled across the universe like some child throwing a stone into water. The events leading up to The Fall twisted and churned, regurgitating new paths for a Rose to bloom. Will it be Red and beautiful? Black and indecisive? White and spotless? Yellow and happy? Full-bloomed and shining? Withered and riddled with thorns? Maybe all of them at once?_

 _…_ _Let's Find Out…_

 _But remember… every decision comes at a price!_

The moon slowly rose into the sky, appearing over the horizon and spreading its dull, grey glow across the forest surrounding the farming village of Patch. A sole, rust red wagon squeaked along the dried dirt path, two honest souls accompanying the soulless wind whistling overhead. A small cottage appeared in front of them, the red cloaked girl's sleeping form staying that way while the blonde looked back at her sister, "just a bit longer Ruby, we'll be there soon and then we'll have a full family again." Her smile glowed just as bright as the mass of blond hair.

Ruby didn't even stir as the girl, the older sister, continued on ahead towards the house, oblivious to the dull crimson pairs staring at her through the thicket. The wagon made a hideous sound yet again as they arrived at the clearing of their destination; no light seemed to emanate from the house but the blonde was too ecstatic to even realize such a huge detail.

The stars twinkled above them, silently watching the duo as their fates set in stone. A snarl echoed around the forest line, glowing crimson eyes appearing in the darkness. The blonde whipped around, lavender meeting dozens of red orbs.

They rushed in, no communication required between the pack for they already knew; there were two young souls defenseless and waiting to be devoured. Their paws and claws tore up the ground in their mindless sprint toward their pray, their downfall was that they didn't even check their surroundings.

A scream ripped through the silence, coming from the blonde as they reached her. Her legs kicked into gear and she jumped out of the way, dirt flying into her face and hair.

A sound behind her made everything in the clearing freeze, "Yang?" A questionable voice rang out amongst the forms. All heads whipped towards the rusty red wagon, a package of practically newborn innocence bundled up in it.

A hunger entered the beasts' eyes as they slowly stalked around towards the small soul. Gleaming silver teared up at the sight before them. Massive beasts stood in front of the girl, black as night and eyes a burning crimson; absolutely terrifying. She wailed, arms flailing and trying to break out of her cloak-y restraint, until something made the beasts go away.

A crow's feathers dropped onto the ground one soundlessly setting itself on the beast's snout. Suddenly the sound of metal tearing through the air burst out. It was almost like a machine's mechanisms spinning faster than they were supposed to **(1)**. A blade cleanly cut through the beast's neck, severing it and the ends melting from the speed the metal was traveling.

A tall, lanky man stood a few feet away from the decaying body, it's minimal skeletal plates resting on the ground from where the darkness used to be. His crimson eyes burned with just as much fury as the Grimm's, red met red in a silent clash. An alpha versus a scythe-wielder. A howl escaped the beast before it whipped around and sprinted out of clearing, its tail between its legs; the rest of the shadow beasts soon followed it.

His grey and black suit jacket and pants blended together along with his red and black cape. He strode over to the blond-haired girl, the older sister. "Yang? What are you doing out here, with Ruby no less?!" He shouted out, questioning the girl with his raspy voice.

"I-I… I just wanted to find momma!" She burst into tears, they slid down her cheeks for a moment before he swooped down and brought her into a bear hug, the saltwater seeping into the shoulder of his jacket and cloak.

He bit his lip in silent contemplation, debating whether he should go along with his just now made up plan. "Alright Yang… I'm going to be taking Ruby home with me after I get you back to your dad, I want to make absolutely sure that she can be defended and I can only do that if I'm with her."

"No!" She screamed out at him, renewed tears flowing, "you can't take her away, she's all I have left…" The last part was muttered.

"But if she's with you guys, she can't be protected. What's better? A dead sister or an away and living one?" He had to lay it straight, no matter how much it would break her; he _had_ to make sure Ruby would stay safe, it was his last promise to Summer.

"I- ah. Alive…" She mumbled out, the tears slowly stopped until her eyes were just bloodshot. She quickly fell asleep after he set her in the wagon next to her sister and drug them back to the island town of Patch.

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"No! No! And no! You can't possibly be thinking about taking Ruby! She's all Yang has left!" Taiyang shouted out towards the man he had always seen as a friend her could rely on.

"Well what if another incident like this happens again! Who'll be there to save them! No one will! They're lucky I was patrolling the forest tonight or else they would be _dead_!" Qrow shouted back at the man, his gravelly voice reverberating around the porch of the Xiao Long residence.

"I'll be there to help them!" Taiyang shouted back in defiance.

"She's my fucking daughter for Dust's sake Tai, let me be a father for once!" the words slipped out of his mouth before he could even think about them. A shadow fell across both of their faces, anger turning to sadness.

"Do whatever you want with her…" the blonde muttered before stumbling into the house, Qrow waited there for a minute before realizing that the other wasn't coming back with his daughter.

He stepped into the house, a yellow glow surrounding him and allowing unsavory memories to flash by, he dispelled them just as quickly as they came, only a white cloak remained and a frown on his face. His black shoes clopped against the floor, the heel making it echo around the hallway. A slightly cracked open door sat on one side of it, he gently pushed it open.

Taiyang sat there holding the little Rose, her giggles filling the air and bringing a smile to the normally stoic man's face. The hammer-wielder heard him and his happy smile turned sad, a reminiscent look in his eyes.

"She would be glad to know that you're finally taking up your duties as a father."

"Yeah…" Qrow's voice cracked slightly as the mention of the white cloak wearing former team leader. He stared into the silver eyes of his daughter that reminded him so much of his past wife, his composure broke and a single tear ran down his cheek.

"Should Yang?.."

"No, she needs some rest after what happened today. I'll… let her know what happened tomorrow, you should get going now."

"Yeah… thanks for this, Tai. I hope you know how much it means to me."

"No problem. Anything to help out an old friend, yeah?"

"I'll… see you soon I suppose." He took the delicate rose into his hands and walked out of the room. He practically ran out of the Xiao Long household before activating his semblance and flying off. A small rumble followed at the activation of his speed semblance and black feathers slowly floated down.

 _And that his how the Remnant everyone knew shattered into a million pieces and each piece allowed a different path. Now we just have to wait and see which the Rose chooses. Will it flourish into any color or will it wilt in a crow's midst? We'll find out… eventually… she just has to grow her stems and thorns first. Then we can see the delicate bud that will alter the course of Remnant itself, defying the gods and playing a chess game of her own…_

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AN: So that was the prologue to this story _The Shatter Effect._ I tried to think of a different name for the butterfly effect but I think I failed, meh it's whatever. Reviews are greatly appreciated and help me work faster and better so I'd be grateful if you left one, it helps out a lot! :)

See y'all next time!

 **1) Kind of like a Night Fury from DreamWorks Dragons.**


	2. Chapter I: Meet Autumn Spark

**Soooo, hey y'all, I'm back after that long time. I honestly didn't expect this story to garner so much attention, it's my second most popular story, sitting at ~60 follows and ~40 favourites. But I'm back after finally planning a few arcs ahead. Also note that Ruby is wearing her Slayer Outfit and that the metal on her shoulder covers her whole arm now.**

 **But yeah, please enjoy.**

 **I'll give you a little hint about the chapter though, Cinder is… a little different!**

 **Also this chapter may be a little awkward considering that I had changed POV (as in Third to First) halfway through and it may seem a little choppy at times.**

 **I'm also going to be doing a new thing, chapter covers, please tell my how you like them or if you don't!**

 **Side note:**

 _Italics: Narration or the Past._

 **Chapter** **Cover:** Ruby pinned to the wall by an arrow with Cinder approaching her, bow in hand and a look of curiosity.

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 _When something shatters, the pieces are left for someone to pick up. When_ someone _shatters, the pieces are left to pick themselves up, for some people think that 'other people have it worse' so you are not entitled to your own suffering._

 _Moral of the story? People value objects more than they do people…_ especially _when someone sees a person as an object…_

" _...everyone is entitled to their own sorrow, for the heart has no metrics or form of measure… And all of it… irreplaceable."_

Qrow was gone again for a who knows how long, it could be months or maybe just a day, all he said was "saving the world takes time, and keeping it secret takes longer," and then flew away.

Qrow, being a very successful huntsman, lived within one of the more expensive apartments in the residential district of Vale. Unlike Taiyang and Summer who had later decided to live in the secluded forests of Patch, Qrow had decided to live in the city and have more access to jobs and bounties. And so, I lived there as well.

It's not like I actually ever went into the house for anything other than food, hygiene, and sleep… especially sleep. Qrow, when not training me in the gym that he regularly rented out, was usually out 'saving the world' or just on a simple job that took around a week to a few months. And thus, I had _a lot_ of free time.

I would usually just head to the local gym and spend the day there, doing the training regime that Qrow had made for me; which was actually just doing everything until you were to the point of passing out.

But today was my rest day, as I had deemed it. A time where I could spend my time doing whatever I please, and today, I chose to head out into Vale. I didn't know what it was about it, but the city fascinated me. Maybe it was the lack of ever visiting or an outside force, it didn't matter, all the mattered was that it struck me as something awesome and fun.

Qrow had said that Beacon was guarding something inside of itself and acted as a beacon of hopen for the the safe veil protecting it, and thus the name of the school and the city. But that was whatever, I was just interested in it and that was all that I knew. So, I made it my personal goal to investigate my growing fascination with the towering skyscrapers and small town gangs littering the place.

I was currently venturing around the shadier part of town, run down alleyways being my paths through the dirtied place. I didn't know what I was looking for here. Information? On the city most likely. Purpose? Being with, or without, Qrow had made my boredom spike. Maybe just some fun? Like previously stated, boredom was high these days.

The straight sword on the right of my waist clapped against my thigh, reminding me of its presence. Wilted Thorn, as I had named it because I was once holding a rose, which ended up pricking my skin and drawing blood, had wilted the next day after doing so. The blade had a fluorescent crimson colour, fading almost, while the five inch long guard and the leather handle were black.

I had decided to leave Crescent Rose behind today, which I would normally never do, but I thought that maybe a kid carrying around a HVSS, albeit folded up, was a little weird. But that still didn't deter from my level of fighting, be it a sword or a scythe, Qrow had taught me to master both. But I guess a kid wandering around alleyways was also kind of suspicious, a frown crossed my face at the adsense of my baby.

I had asked Qrow before what had made him suddenly change his mind about taking care of me. He just waved me off and told me that he was my father and he should've started to act like it, I knew it was at least a white lie so I just carried on with my days. Yes, I could remember a time when I had been petrified by a beast and a man wielding a scythe had saved me but I didn't remember much else.

But that was besides the point! I was here today to relax and forget all of my problems, not to think about them.

The sun was still sitting at its peak in the slightly cloudy sky, providing its heat to the citizens beneath. My boots thumped slightly against the stone alleys, numerous cardboard boxes were lined up against the wall, their inhabitants were nowhere to be seen.

I thought it about time I ate something, the smells coming from the other side of the building luring me into the plaza. I took a sharp left out of the sunny alleyway into an even sunnier place filled with different aromas and people. My grey eyes lit up at the sight, an aura of excitement practically rolling off of me as I hopped on my toes, which place to go first?

Well, there was a noodle shop right in front of me or there was exotic Mistralian food over on my left, dainty Atlesian food was to the right… I could probably only afford the noodle shop.

I trudged up to the shop, ordering a simple dish. A huge bowl slid right into my vision. I dropped a Lien card onto the table and waited for it to be returned to my hands. It slid across the table and I dove in.

It was a relatively uneventful meal, some people that passed by gave sceptical glances towards the sword on my waist but other than that only one other thing happened; a girl, looking around the age of 15, with glowing saffron eyes and ashy black hair, sat a few seats next to me. An aura of power radiated off of her and I leaned slightly away from the noirette. I knew I was looking for something to bide my time but I don't think _this_ is what I was looking for.

I quickly finished my meal and hopped out of the seat, the red cloak on my shoulders billowed behind me and the scarf attached to it covered the bottom half of my face; a frown made its way onto my face and my previously shining, silver eyes dulled back to grey again. The metal armour covering my arm shifted as I set my hand on the handle of Wilted Thorn.

I kept my head low as I wove through the masses, lunch hour just arriving along with all of its people. I turned a corner, into an alleyway, and saw the saffron eyed girl following me _with a smirk_. She knew that I knew that she was following me, and she was playing with me.

I scoffed at the thought. I set my pace to a jog and started weaving through the twists and turns, that was until my instincts screamed at me and I hopped to the left, an arrow piercing _my_ cloak and pinned me to the wall.

The girl was walking slowly, the glass heels on her feet clicking against the stone. Saffron eyes burned with an unidentifiable look. Hunger, maybe?

She reached me, the clicking stopping, and the look in her eyes morphed into something more recognisable, curiosity. "You know, not many people would have been able to dodge that."

I stayed silent, we didn't like to talk to strangers; but maybe, this'll be my opportunity, "..."

"And not many people decide to stay silent when I'm around, they're too afraid." A… sad look passed across her eyes, those alluring saffron orbs staring into a dull grey.

The sad look passed and tarnished gold became a burning colour again, "you interest me," she stuck her hand out, the left one, I'm starting to appreciate how much she observes, "let's be friends!"

My gloved left hand pushed forwards into hers, I think it would feel soft, "Scarlet, Scarlet… Branwen." I purposely said Qrow's last name along with my middle name, after all, I couldn't be giving my full real name just yet.

"Autumn, Autumn Spark… I think we can both agree to give false names?"

I nodded my head, it was only fair.

"So… I'm not used to having friends… Wanna come to my place?"

I just nodded my head again and we started on our way.

"So, you don't like to talk much?" Her eyes weren't burning anymore, they were warm.

I shook my head, agreeing with her.

"I can respect that, I have a friend that doesn't talk anymore." That tarnished gold look returned.

I bumped her shoulder and offered a smile, even if we were just becoming friends and haven't even told each other our real names, I'll still offer comfort. That's just in my nature.

"But it's alright though, she has a friend that really helps her out a lot, her name's Naverna Torchwick!" Saffron again. I'm starting to really like that colour, don't tell anyone that though.

I smiled at my success.

We arrived at the docks and made our way towards a warehouse, abandoned by the looks on the outside. "Well, this is where my friends and I live, I want you to meet them."

My smile got a little wider and my eyes lit up again, this is what I've been looking for, someone like Autumn.

 _And thus begins the journey of Scarlet Branwen, or Ruby Rose as some people might know her. But for now, she's leaving the Rose life behind, in favor of journeying with Autumn Spark._

 **And so that was this chapter, follows/favourites/reviews are greatly appreciated. Sorry again about how long this took to get out, I've been busy and writers block is annoying.**

 **Up Next: Meeting the Gang**


	3. Status Update

I honestly do feel a little bad having to type this out. Just a little. You can probably guess right now by the title of this "chapter" which is actually a status update. Mostly all of my stories are going on hiatus. Which means they're dead. Well… they might have a small heartbeat, the tiniest so that if I were ever to think about returning to it… then it'd be there.

But yes, as of now, all currently listed stories before this update are now discontinued/dead. I say "before this update" because not only is there something I'm working on with someone else but there's also an idea I'm going to take care of a lot better than I did with these. I guess I should tell you why now though, you can just skip this part if you want. Also, none of my stories will be up for adoption right now, so please don't ask...

For one: I've lost a lot of my writing motivation. It seems that when I started about a year ago, I was so full of energy and ideas that I just couldn't stop writing… but evidently that "spark" needs to be rekindled.

For two: I've had little to no time to write lately, and if I have had time to write, I have to be writing for school. But it's the final semester until summer (I have roughly 30 days 'till summer) so I should have a lot more time soon.

For three: I can't seem to take any of my ideas anywhere. I can get a good start, maybe a few chapters, but after that I just can't get anything done or out; which is very infuriating.

For four: I've been thinking about a lot more original work lately, and I've gotten a good idea started with someone else (not the same story or person talked about earlier). But I still don't think I'm ready to pursue an original work, I'm far too out of practice and I'm but a small cub as a writer. I know pretty much nothing. So expect me to stay near fanfiction for a little practice for a bit.

For five: I mainly write OC's, and I know that isn't exactly welcomed in. And, if anything, I'm an honest person. I like to see the view count rise up and I like the follows/ favourites/reviews, it's very heartwarming to see them. Yes, they don't mean everything to me, but they surely mean a lot. So my secondary goal in fanfiction is to try and show people that an OC doesn't have to be some flat character that is extremely over-powered or is just interested in girls/guys. I want to show people that original characters, if done properly and with care, can become truly a part of a story. Thus the new idea I've been thinking about recently (which don't expect to be out anytime soon).

So those are kind of the main reasons about this update. I'm sorry that if anyone really liked my stories, or were invested in them, that you have to be reading this. But in the shortly distant future I hope you'll still be here to read something that I think will take me, and you, places unbelievable.

I wish you a good day and I tip my hat to anyone that stayed with me this long, and I hope you stay longer. Fly you high, run like the river, live your life with luck and prosperity on your side.

See ya… hopefully soon...

-Reaper


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